Granite Gear Blaze 60 Review
Our Verdict
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This Product
Granite Gear Blaze 60 | |||||
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Awards | |||||
Price | $263.46 at Amazon Compare at 3 sellers | $334.99 at Amazon Compare at 3 sellers | $300 List | $199 List $199.00 at REI | $303.99 at Amazon Compare at 3 sellers |
Overall Score | |||||
Star Rating | |||||
Bottom Line | This super-light pack caries loads like a pro and has just about every feature you could ever want | This now classic pack offers incredible ventilation, an awesome set of pockets, and a hug-like suspension | This comfortable yet supportive pack has an extremely functional set of features and is one of the lightest in our test | The Flash 55 is a great value, with excellent features and a great weight to volume ratio at an affordable price | This heavier but more comfortable pack provides great support for larger loads |
Rating Categories | Granite Gear Blaze 60 | Osprey Atmos 65 AG | Ultralight Adventur... | REI Co-op Flash 55 | Osprey Aether 65 |
Comfort (40%) | |||||
Ease of Use (25%) | |||||
Weight (20%) | |||||
Adjustability (15%) | |||||
Specs | Granite Gear Blaze 60 | Osprey Atmos 65 AG | Ultralight Adventur... | REI Co-op Flash 55 | Osprey Aether 65 |
Measured Weight | 3.0 lbs | 4.6 lbs | 2.8 lbs | 2.8 lbs | 5.0 lbs |
Weight per Liter (oz/L) | 0.80 oz/L | 1.13 oz/L | 0.60 oz/L | 0.81 oz/L | 1.23 oz/L |
Advertised Volume | 60 L | 65 L | 75 L | 55 L | 65 L |
Organization Compartments | Lid, front mesh pocket, side water bottle pockets, hip belt pockets | Lid, front mesh pocket, side water bottle pockets, hip belt pockets | Front mesh pocket, side water bottle pockets, hip belt pockets | Lid, front mesh pockets, 2 side pockets per side, hip belt pockets, shoulder strap pocket | Lid, front mesh pocket, side water bottle pockets, hip belt pockets |
Access | Top, front | Top, sides, bottom | Top | Top | Top, front, bottom |
Hydration Compatible | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Sleeping Bag Compartment | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
Materials | 100D robic nylon w/ DWR coating | Main Body: Recycled 210D honey comb nylon Accent: Recycled 210D high tenacity nylon Bottom: Recycled 500D high tenacity nylon |
400 Robic fabric | Main Body: 100D ripstop nylon Bottom: 420D nylon |
420HD nylon, DWR treatment |
Measured Volume (main compartment) | 55L | (not measured) | 55L | 45L | (not measured) |
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Granite Gear Blaze 60 has one of the lowest weight-to-volume ratios in our test, yet it carries heavy loads phenomenally. With all the right pockets in all the right places, this pack is a force to be reckoned with. It's no wonder that Granite Gear has had a good reputation with long-distance hikers.
Performance Comparison
Comfort
This pack's tremendous suspension can take on almost any food and gear packing list. The Air Current frame supports a monster load and has channels for warm air to escape, making it one of the more breathable back panels in our test — even without a trampoline-style harness.
The foam used in the back panel, lumbar area, and hip belts is firm to support the weight of a heavy pack but soft enough to be comfortable. The plastic frame sheet flexes easily to move well with your body but resists buckling when pressured by downward force. As a result, the pack feels solid on your back without any shifting or slouching.
The hip belt does a good job of supporting a heavily loaded pack, even without the sturdy frame structure that some other hip belts have. The shoulder straps also do a great job of distributing the weight of a heavy pack. However, with the lack of breathable mesh, we found both the shoulder straps and the hip belt to be somewhat sweaty on warm days.
Ease of Use
The Granite Gear Blaze is loaded with features and built for the avid hiker. It includes many great features, such as extra large hip belt pockets, a stretchy mesh stuff-it pocket, huge side water bottle pockets, a removable top lid, and a long-hidden front access zipper.
The internal volume of the Blaze 60 is 55 liters. If you count the total volume, including exterior pockets, the actual amount of gear you can store is much higher than Granite Gear's advertised 60 liters.
The hip belt pockets on this pack are among the most spacious in our lineup. We used them for a slew of things we wanted to keep handy and available for the hike, like a map & compass, bars, chapstick, headlamp, and even a large phone or small camera.
The side water bottle pockets are also enormous, easily fitting two Smartwater bottles each. A shock cord cinches up the lip to keep everything inside from flopping around or falling out. The side pockets have so much space that we stored our 750-milliliter pot and a Smartwater bottle in one for a good portion of our testing. The stretchy mesh front pocket is narrow at the top, making accessing things inside a little tricky, but it has great capacity. We used it for stuffing our rain gear, pack cover, or light layers.
Three compression straps go across the front of the pack to keep the load tidy and are great for lashing anything from a closed-cell foam pad to bulky layers or wet socks. Each side of the pack also has three different compression straps. Again, great for keeping the load secured and for holding tent poles in place.
The long, hidden front access zipper runs up most of the front of the pack to the side of the stretchy mesh pocket. Some users will love this feature, giving quick access to items in the main compartment of the Blaze without having to unpack everything from the top. The heavy gauge zipper is strong enough to still pack items tightly against it without causing it to burst open.
The top lid is simple, with a single zippered pocket. While not the largest brain we tested, it stores toiletries bags, snacks, and our dirty items bag. For some trips, when you don't need or want the lid, it can be easily removed, and under the lid, the main compartment has a cinch and roll style closure with two crossing compression straps to lock down the top securely. The lid can also be used as a waist pack when combined with the waist belt or as a chest pack for even more access to things while on the go.
Weight
Weighing in at a scant three pounds, this is one of the lightest weight packs in our comparison. We like to compare weight to pack volume to understand how dry pack weight correlates to overall carrying capacity. The Blaze has one of the lowest weight-to-volume ratios in our lineup. Normally, how much weight a pack will comfortably carry directly correlates to the pack weight; heavier packs support heavier loads. However, with this pack, that isn't the case. It's a true workhorse when you need it, and also a light, elegant, practically featherweight pack, beaten only by seriously ultralight packs.
Granite Gear does a great job of adding durability to the pack in places you need it while keeping things otherwise simple to reduce excess weight further. The Robic fabric is both lightweight and tear-resistant. This pack carries well whether you are loading it down with heavy climbing gear or heading out with a fresh resupply of food and water for a long desert crossing on the PCT.
Adjustability
The A.C. (Air Current) frame comes in three sizes for short, regular, and long torso lengths. Each one of these sizes has four separate shoulder strap attachment points. This makes it simple to adjust the torso length to get the right fit. The hip belt can also expand or compress to fit waist sizes from 26 to 42 inches.
The velcro attachment system made it difficult to remove the RE-FIT waist belt. This makes adjusting the sizing of the hip belt tricky. However, you shouldn't need to do this often, so it isn't a huge deal. Overall, this pack has great adjustability and is very easy to get a great fit.
Should You Buy the Granite Gear Blaze 60?
The Blaze 60 is a well-priced backpacking backpack that's lightweight, comfortable, and full of features. Not only is it a solid workhorse of a bag, but it also has a great set of functional features useful to all different types of hikers. Considering how well this pack carries heavy loads and how little it weighs, it's a fantastic pack for most backpackers, from beginners to experienced thru-hikers.
What Other Backpacking Backpacks Should You Consider?
If you want a lightweight pack that can comfortably carry a substantial load, you can't go wrong with the Blaze 60. However, if you're looking for more support and breathability in the back panel, we recommend the Osprey Atmos 65 AG or Osprey Aether 65. If you're looking for an even lighter pack, we recommend the Ultralight Adventure Equipment Catalyst or the REI Flash 55.